Boat with means for cutting an ice channel



April 2 1959 F 5, EHW R 2,883,957

BOAT WITH MEANS FOR CUTTING AN ICE CHANNEL Filed July 19, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet l 5* 4"? "w :3 ,nlq "WI 1 '1 ,g 1

Frank 0.- 5mm, IN V EN TOR.

April 28, 1959 F. c. EHINGER BOAT WITH MEANS FOR CUTTING AN- ICE CHANNEL.

Filed July 19, 1954 3 sheets-sheet 2 Frank C. E hingr INVENTOR.

Apnl 28, 1959 FIQEHINGER BOAT WITH MEANS FOR CUTTING AN ICE CHANNEL Filed July 19, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Frank 6. Ehinger INVENTOR.

United States Patent BOAT WITH MEANS FOR CUTTING AN ICE CHANNEL Frank C. Ehinger, Adrian, Mich.

Application July 19, 1954, Serial No. 444,181

4 Claims. (Cl. 114-42) This invention relates to an ice channel cutter, and more specifically provides an improved and novel construction of a boat together with ice cutting members positioned forwardly of the boat for cutting the ice into small pieces for collection into the boat wherein the ice is discharged laterally of the boat thereby completely eliminating the broken ice from the channel in which the boat passes, thereby retaining the channel in an open and clear condition for a relatively long period of time and providing a device that may open channels regardless of the thickness and nature of the ice wherein water traflic in areas normally closed by ice during the cold periods of the year may be maintained in a navigable condition.

An object of the present invention is to provide an ice channel cutter that will cut and completely remove the ice from the path of movement of a boat wherein the ice will be first taken aboard the boat, crushed and then blown to one side thereof, thereby leaving a completely clear channel for maneuvering the boat through the ice.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an ice channel cutter that may be used to clear channels in ice covered waterways and also to clear harbors and docks that normally become ice clogged during cold periods of the year.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an ice channel cutter that is highly maneuverable due to the provision of an auxiliary propeller that operates transversely of the stern portion of a ship, thereby permitting rapid and accurate steering control of the ship at all times by use of the combination of the conventional longitudinally operating propeller and the auxiliary, transversely operating propeller.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an ice channel cutter that may be utilized to cut ice of various thicknesses and which may store the ice on board for discharge at a later period, such as when clearing docks wherein the ice must be stored on board and then discharged in the open sea or immediately discharged laterally thereof such as in the instance of clearing a channelway for passage of the boat through relatively open water.

Still another important feature of the present invention is to provide an ice channel cutter that may be quickly and easily converted from its ice cutting condition to a normal cruising condition wherein the device may be easily and quickly moved from place to place as desired.

Other important objects of the present invention reside in its relatively simplified construction, efiiciency in operation, versatility, its adaptation to various uses and its relatively inexpensive manufacture.

These, together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent, reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the ice channel cutter of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the ice channel cutter of the present invention with portions thereof being broken away to show the details of construction of the device;

Figure 3 is a partial, enlarged topplan view showing the details of construction and the relationship of the ice cutting members, the collecting ramp, as well as the discharge spout;

Figure 4 is a partial, perspective view showing the ice cutting elements in retracted position and the ice gathering ramp in raised position wherein the device may be easily moved from one position to another;

Figure 5 is a detailed, transverse sectional view taken substantially upon a plane passing along section line 55 of Figure 3 showing the details of construction of the ice cutting saws and chippers positioned therebetween, to gether with the means for driving the saws;

Figure 6 is a detailed, sectional view showing the construction of the interlocking hooks for retaining the two sections of rotating saws in position forwardly of the boat;

Figure 7 is a detailed perspective view showing the universal connection between the boat hull and one of the saw supporting arms, wherein the rotating saws may be retracted to the position shown in Figure 4;

Figure 8 is a schematic view of the drive mechanism for the conventional longitudinal propeller and the auxiliary transverse propeller, wherein the transverse propeller may be reversed as desired for accurate control of the ship, thereby permitting the ice channel cutter of the present invention to cut channels in the ice that correspond to the channels in the water and around docks in a more efiicient manner; and

Figure 9 is a fragmental detailed sectional view illustrating the inclined deck construction.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, it will be seen that the numeral 10 generally designates the ice channel cutter of the present invention comprising an elongated ship 12 having the usual navigating bridge 14, crews quarters 16, holds 18 and other structural features normally found in large seagoing craft.

Referring now specifically to Figure 2, it will be seen that the ship 12 is provided with the usual propeller 20 for driving the ship through a main drive shaft 22 as shown in Figure 8. The main drive shaft 22 drives the propeller 20 through a series of gears 24 which may be in the form of reduction gears if desired. It will be understood that the drive for the propeller 20 may be through a direct drive for the most elficient transmittal of the power to the propeller 20. Adjacent the propeller 20 and located forwardly thereof, the ship 12 is provided with an enlarged transverse opening 26 having a propeller 28 rotatably mounted therein and driven by a bevel gear arrangement 30 and a shaft 32 having a bevel gear 34 on its other end for selective engagement with a sliding double bevel gear 36 that is slidably mounted on the drive shaft 22. A suitable pivotal lever 38 is suitably secured to a supporting structure and engages flange collar 40 on the sliding gear 36 for sliding selective bevel gears 36 into engagement with the bevel gear 34, thereby rotating the propeller 28 in a selected direction of rotation. The pivotal member 38 is connected to a suitable control rod 42 for manipulating the bevel gears 36, thereby accurately controlling the rotation of the propeller 28 wherein the transverse thrust caused by the propeller 28 will accurately steer the ship 12.

The forward end of the ship 12 is provided with an enlarged opening 44 that runs from the bow of the ship 12 rearwardly wherein the bottom or deck 45 of the opening 44 is inclined downwardly and rearwardly and at the same time inclines from outboard to inboard, thereby forming substantially a funnel-like deck. At the rear of the opening 44 is provided a longitudinal funnel-like member 46 in the nature of a large conduit that is in communication with crushers 48 and a blower 50 of any design capable of blowing a large volume of crushed ice. The blower 50 is connected to a conduit 52 which projects upwardly through the :deck of the ship 12 and terminates in a laterally extending spout, 54 that may be swiveled from one side to; the other of the ship, thereby forming a discharge spout for discharging material to either side of the ship 12.

The holds 18 are in communication with the enlarged conduit 46 and the crushers 48 and a screw-type conveyor 56 is provided for transferring material from the holds 18 through the crushers 48 into the blower 50 for discharge to the side of the ship or for transmitting the material from the opening 44 into the holds 18 wherein the material may be transported to a desired location and then discharged.

Positioned forwardly of the navigating bridge 14 is a vertically extending mast 58 having suitable guy wires 60 attached thereto wherein a pair of lifting booms 62 are supported by lift wires 64 that may be connected to a suitable winch (not shown). The lifting booms 62 are provided with vertically moving hooks 66 that may be raised and lowered by a suitable winch (also not shown) and the lifting booms 62 may be connected to the deck of the ship 12 by suitable pivotal connections 68, thereby forming a device for raising and lowering the ice cutting mechanism generally indicated by the numeral 70.

The ice cutting mechanism 70 generally includes a pair of forwardly extending supporting arms 72 connected to recess areas 74 in the ship 12 by universal connections 76 and supporting brackets 78 substantially as shown in Figure 7. Each of the supporting arms 72 is provided with a pair of diverging arms 80 having a platform 82 mounted thereon for supporting an electric motor 84. The forward end of the diverging arms 80 rotatably support a transverse axle or shaft 86. A plurality of laterally spaced circular saws 88 are secured to the shaft 86 for rotation therewith and the electric motor 84 is provided with a drive shaft 90 extending forwardly therefrom and supported in suitable bearings 92 and the outer end of the drive shaft 90 is provided with a bevel gear 94 for meshing engagement with a bevel gear 96 secured to the shaft 86 for driving the shaft 86 and the saws 88. The bevel gears 94 and 96 are enclosed in a water-tight housing 98 wherein water will not affect the operation of the bevel gears 94 and 96. Positioned between the saws 88 and secured to the shaft 86 is a plurality of chippers 100 that include four radially extending arms having laterally extending sharpened portions 102 wherein the arms 100 are substantially onehalf of the diameter of the saws 88 wherein thick ice cut by the saws 88 will be broken up by the chippers 100, thereby preventing the ice from binding against the shaft 86.

I The inner sides of the diverging arms 80 are releasably held together by a latch mechanism 104. -The latch mechanism includes a stationary hook 106 mounted on one of thearms 80 and a pivotal hook 1'08.pivotally mounted on a stud 110 on the other of thearms 80. The pivotal hook 108 is provided with a spring112 for urging the pivotal hook 108 into hooked engagement with the stationary hook 106. A guide housing 114 is provided for the pivotal hook 108' and an operating lug 116 extends through an aperture 118 in the housing 114 for attachment to a suitable flexible control line 120 for withdrawing the pivotal hook 108 from engagement with the stationary hook 106, thereby permitting the cutting assembly 70 to be raised and swung about the universal connection 76 to a retracted position substantially as shown in Figure 4 by manipulation of the lifting boom 62 and the lifting hooks 66 wherein the saws 88 will not be in contact with the ice 122.

Pivotally secured along each bottom edge of the opening 44 is a collecting or loading ramp 124 hingedly secured to the bottom edge of the opening 44 by hinge means 126. The forward ends .of the ramp 1'24 areprovided with projecting fingers 128 for collecting the ice as it leaves the saws 88 after it has been cut thereby. The ramps 124 generally form a scoop-like effect and the rear ends are generally curved upwardly and inwardly at the rear edges thereof as denoted by the numeral 130, thereby guiding the broken and strip ice into the opening 44 wherein the funnel-like deck of the opening 44 will guide the ice into the large funnel 46. Suitable curved guides 132 may be provided on the upper surface of the ramp 124 for facilitating the movement of the ice into the aperture 44. When it is desired to move the ship 12 through clear water, the ramp 124 may be-pivoted upwardly as shown in Figure 4 by any well known raising and lowering means, the details of which are not shown.

in operation, the ship 12 is driven through the water by the propeller 20 and a suitable power source (not shown) and the saws 88 are lowered into engagement with the ice 122. The electric motors 84 are actuated, thereby rotating the saws 88 as well as the chippers 100, thereby sawing the ice into a plurality of relatively narrow longitudinal strips. If the ice 122 is relatively thin, the chippers will not contact the ice 122, thereby leaving the ice substantially in a plurality of longitudinal strips which are gathered onto the ramp 124 due to the forward motion of the ship 12 and the forwardly projecting fingers 128 as well as the positioning of the ramp 124 which is substantially at water level. The forward motion of the ship 12 will cause the strips of ice 122 to move rearwardly along the ramps 124. Due to the inwardly inclined nature of the ramps 124 and the inwardly curved rear portion 130 of the ramp 124, the ice will be moved onto the floor or deck of the enlarged opening 44 and then into the funnel-like member 46. If the ice 122 is relatively thick, the saws 88 will first cut the ice into a plurality of strips and the chippers 100 will break the ice between adjacent saws 88, thereby preventing the ice from engaging the shaft 86 and jamming the area between adjacent saws 88. The chippers 100 will break the stripsof ice cut by the saws 88 into a plurality of relatively small pieces which will be gathered by the ramps 124 and fed onto the deck of the opening 44. As the deck 44slopes inwardly and downwardly, the ice will be directed into the funnel-like openings 46 by the forward movement of the ship 12 and the inclined position of the ramp 124 and the deck of the opening 44.

When it is desired to render the ice cutting mechanism inoperative, the saws 88 along with their driving mechanism are lifted by the lift hooks 66 and the two adjacent groups of saws 88 are separated from each other by releasing the hook 108 from the hook 106, thereby permitting the group of saws to swing about the connection 76 to a position overlying the deck of the ship 12, sub-.

stantially as shown in Figure 4. After thishas been completed, the ramps 124 may be pivoted upwardly, thereby closing the enlarged opening 44 wherein the vessel or hull 12 may be moved rapidly through the water without water entering the opening 44.

It will be seen that the device of the present invention may be utilized for clearing channels wherever desired and the ice cleared from the channel will be discharged laterally onto the remaining ice after it has been crushed by a suitable crusher 48 by the utilization of a blower 50 and a discharge spout 54 which may be directed to. either side of the ship 12. It will be seen that this device completely cleans the channel wherein the channel will be retained in this open condition for a relatively long period of time. Also, the ice channel cutter of the present invention operates much more efliciently than the conventional ice breakers which rely solely upon crushing and breaking the ice and forcing it aside by reinforced plates in the forward end thereof. The ice channel cutter of the present invention may be utilized in harbors and around docking areas for removing iceadjacent the docks wherein the ice may be temporarily stored in the holds 18 and then transported to a remote area for discharge, thereby completely cleaning and eliminating ice around the docks for maneuvering of tugs and the like for docking large ships. The use of the present invention will eliminate the normally seasonal work of the water shipping industry in areas having low temperature periods that cause the seaways to become frozen over and impassable. This device will also eliminate the necessity of storage of raw materials or other supplies for use by various industries during the cold periods when they cannot have their supply replenished by ships, thereby saving the cost of storage and the cost of rehandling.

The propellers may be driven by reversible electric motors, thereby eliminating the series of driving gears as illustrated in Figure 8. Further, any desirable power means may be utilized for driving the propellers. All the exposed parts of the invention may be electrically heated, thereby retaining the device free of ice for operation in areas of extremely low temperature.

While the specific details of portions of the ship have been omitted, it will be understood that they will conform to the accepted specifications in the shipping industry and various other types of power sources or the like may be utilized other than those specifically illustrated. Further, the particular size of the saws 88 and the spacing thereof may be varied for different types of work, and any suitable means may be provided for adjusting the vertical position of the saws 88 as well as the position of the ramps 124 as the particular situations may demand.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will be readily understood and further explanation is believed to be unnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A marine ice channel cutter comprising a floatable ships hull, means for propelling and maneuvering said hull, a plurality of ice cutters mounted on said hull and projecting forwardly therefrom for cutting a channel through the marine ice to permit passage of the hull, means on the forward part of said hull for gathering the cut ice onto the hull, means for discharging all of the gathered ice laterally from the upper central portion of the hull to either side of the hull onto the ice alongside the channel, said cutters including a plurality of transversely aligned rotatable saws mounted on a transverse shaft positioned forwardly of said hull, said saws being spaced apart for cutting ice into a plurality of longitudinal strips, said means for gathering said cut ice including a loading ramp behind said saws for gathering the ice, an open inclined deck on the hull for receiving ice from the ramp, a crusher receiving the ice from the inclined deck, said discharge means including a blower for discharging the ice from the crusher, a swingable discharge spout on said blower for directing the discharge of ice laterally of the ship.

2. A marine ice channel cutter comprising a floatable ships hull, means for propelling and maneuvering said. hull, a plurality of ice cutters mounted on said hull and projecting forwardly therefrom for cutting a channel through the marine ice to permit passage of the hull, means on the forward part of said hull for gathering the cut ice onto the hull, means for discharging all of the gathered ice laterally from the upper central portion of the hull to either side of the hull onto the ice alongside the channel, said cutters including a plurality of transversely aligned rotatable saws mounted on a transverse shaft positioned forwardly of said hull, said saws being spaced apart for cutting ice into a plurality of longitudinal strips, said means for gathering said cut ice including a loading ramp behind said saws for gathering the ice, an open inclined deck on the hull, a crusher receiving the ice from the inclined deck, said discharge means including a blower for discharging the ice from the crusher, a swingable discharge spout on said blower for directing the discharge of ice laterally of the ship, said saws having chippers mounted therebetween and rotatable therewith for cutting thick ice as it is being sawed into strips.

3. A marine ice channel cutter comprising a floatable ships hull, means for propelling and maneuvering said hull, a plurality of ice cutters mounted on said hull and projecting forwardly therefrom for cutting a channel through the marine ice to permit passage of the hull, means on the forward part of said hull for gathering the cut ice onto the hull, means for discharging all of the gathered ice laterally from the upper central portion of the hull to either side of the hull onto the ice alongside the channel, said cutters including a plurality of transversely aligned rotatable saws mounted on a transverse shaft positioned forwardly of said hull, said saws being spaced apart for cutting ice into a plurality of longitudinal strips, said means for gathering said out ice including a loading ramp behind said saws for gathering the ice, an open inclined deck on the hull for receiving ice from the ramp, a crusher receiving ice from the inclined deck, said discharge means including a blower for discharging the ice from the crusher, a swingable discharge spout on said blower for directing the discharge of ice laterally of the ship, said saws having chippers mounted therebetween and rotatable therewith for cutting thick ice as it is being sawed into strips, said ramp being pivotally secured to the hull for movement to a generally vertical inoperative position thereby forming a closure for the inclined deck for permitting the hull to move rapidly through water in a water-tight condition.

4. A device for cutting a channel through solid ice on a body of water and leaving the channel substantially free of floating ice, said device comprising a self-propelled floatable and maneuverable hull, said hull having an open deck on the forward end disposed adjacent the water line of the hull, loading ramp means extending forwardly of said hull and supported from the hull for guiding ice onto the open deck from the body of water, a power shaft adjustably supported from the hull for positioning forwardly of the ramp, a plurality of mutually spaced saws mounted on said shaft for cutting the solid ice into a plurality of strips, chipping means disposed between the saws for breaking the strips of ice cut by the saws, said ramp means receiving the chipped ice from the saws and chippers and discharging onto the deck during forward movement of the hull, and means on said hull for discharging the ice laterally of the hull onto the solid ice forming the edges of the channel.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 499,296 Kruisbrink et al. June 13, 1893 1,697,290 Rowe Jan. 1, 1929 2,435,030 Brady Jan. 27, 1948 2,665,655 Brown et al. Jan. 12, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 19,664 Great Britain Sept. 16, 1898 40,334 Germany Sept. 9, 1887 

